April 1st Isn’t Just for Fools This year!

April 1st ~ Opening Day!

WBC 2013 ~ Final Rosters Include MVP’s & All Stars

The final rosters for the World Baseball Classic include 45 of Major League Baseball’s “cream of the crop”.  Among those listed are Miguel Cabrera, 2012 American League Triple Crown winner and Most Valuable Players Ryan Braun, Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Jimmy Rollins, Miguel Tejada and Joey Votto. 

Here’s a list of those 45 MLB players along with the country they’ll be suited up for:

JOEY VOTTO	CANADA
JUSTIN MORNEAU	CANADA
RUSSELL MARTIN	CANADA
EDINSON VOLQUEZ	DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
FERNANDO RODNEY	DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Red = Duplicates
EDINSON VOLQUEZ	DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
FERNANDO RODNEY	DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
HANLEY RAMIREZ	DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
JOSE REYES	DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
JOSE VALVERDE	DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
MIGUEL TEJADA	DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
NELSON CRUZ	DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
ROBINSON CANO	DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
ADRIAN GONZALEZ	MEXICO
YOVANI GALLARDO	MEXICO
ANDRUW JONES	NETHERLANDS
ALEX RIOS	PUERTO RICO
CARLOS BELTRAN	PUERTO RICO
JAVIER VAZQUEZ	PUERTO RICO
YADIER MOLINA	PUERTO RICO
ADAM JONES	USA
BEN ZOBRIST	USA
BRANDON PHILLIPS	USA
CHRIS PEREZ	USA
CRAIG KIMBREL	USA
DAVID WRIGHT	USA
GIANCARLO STANTON	USA
GIO GONZALEZ	USA
HEATH BELL	USA
JIMMY ROLLINS	USA
JOEY MAUER	USA
MARK TEIXEIRA	USA
R A DICKEY	USA
RYAN BRAUN	USA
RYAN VOGELSONG	USA
SHANE VICTORINO	USA
ASDRUBAL CABRERA	VENEZUELA
CARLOS GONZALEZ	VENEZUELA
CARLOS ZAMBRANO	VENEZUELA
ELVIS ANDRUS	VENEZUELA
FRANCISCO RODRIGUEZ	VENEZUELA
MARTIN PRADO	VENEZUELA
MIGUEL CABRERA	VENEZUELA
MIGUEL MONTERO	VENEZUELA
OMAR INFANTE	VENEZUELA
PABLO SANDOVAL	VENEZUELA
RAMON HERNANDEZ	VENEZUELA

Related articles

• Final Classic rosters brimming with talent (mlb.mlb.com)
• Reds block Cueto from World Baseball Classic (sportsillustrated.cnn.com)
• Rosters for 2013 World Baseball Classic revealed (m.si.com)

knuckleball

Reblogged from :

I came across this picture on the internet a couple weeks ago. Love it. I love the way the catcher is doing the best he can back there to catch it. Barely any spin on that pitch, and it dances up to the plate.

It reminds me of Jim Bouton and his book Ball Four - one of the books I plan on picking up this spring.

Read more… 15 more words

GFBB Note: I never could figure out why there was such a fuss about that crazy knuckleball. It only took one look at this video and I got it! Whew ..... that a pitcher could continually throw such a pitch is amazing! That a catcher could catch it? Phenomenal ~   Reblogged from: A Year of Baseball

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“42″ The Movie Trailer ~ Video

Maybe this should be named “The Jackie Robinson Story”.  I loved this trailer, watched it several times and can’t wait to see the movie which premiers on April 12, 2013.

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“Ichiro the Pitcher in Japan”

Great story from MLB Fan Cave.   Ichiro Suzuki started his baseball career in high school as a pitcher, regularly throwing 75-85 and occasionally 90 mph.  But in his last year, playing as an outfielder with a .505 batting average and 19 home runs, it was determined he should remain in the outfield. 

I love these Japanese baseball videos.  The fans are always wild and enthusiastic, a little crazy.  They love their baseball!  Listening to the announcers is a hoot, and even though I don’t have the faintest idea what they’re saying, you can always use your imagination.   Japan has won the last two World Baseball Classics and has won their first round for the 2012 Classic.  We might be seeing them in San Francisco at the Finals in March, minus Ichiro, who’s decided to sit this one out.  

A World Classic Final between Japan and USA at AT&T Park in March, 2013.  Now that would be something to see.   It could happen ~ stay tuned!

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This Day in History …… Designated Hitter 10th Man On

“December 10, 1972.  The American League adopts the designated hitter rule on a trial basis for three years.”  Forty years later we’re still stuck with it.   Whether you like the DH or not pretty much depends on which league your favorite team plays for. 

I’m a bit obsessed with this designated hitter thing.   I mean why not have a designated catcher that doesn’t have to do anything except “catch”.  Once the opponent has a runner on third, the DC can step in and take the hits for the regular catcher as the runner heads for home , thereby assuring the regular catcher’s safety.  The next inning, or maybe even the next play, the regular catcher can resume his position at the plate.

I tackled the subject earlier this year when I wrote about it based mostly on fact, but also with a tad bit of emotion:

“The official rules of Major League Baseball, Rule 1.01, states clearly:

“Baseball is a game between two teams of nine players each …..”

I’ve been trying to wrap my arms around the designated hitter since it was first introduced by the American League back in 1973, but Official Rule, 1.01, that first rule of baseball, keeps getting in the way.    The Designated Hitter Rule got thrown into MLB Miscellany as an official rule which states that a hitter may be designated to bat for the starting pitcher  in any game.   This came about in 1973 and the “any game” thing meant not only the American League but also the National League.

This was news to me.  I never realized the National League had a choice in the matter.  But for some reason I can’t explain I’ve always thought the National League to be just a little superior in that they played the game with nine players as the game was originally intended to be played,  not with the ten players the AL chose  to protect their prima donna  pitchers from getting a little ruffled.”

I can’t imagine any scenario that would allow me to wholeheartedly accept this notion.  If anyone has any ideas, other than you’re trying to protect the pitcher, I’d like to hear them.   It’s rather like a sacred cow you know, and it’s one of the  reasons I find the National League just a little superior to the American League.  

Okay then.  I got that off my chest this morning.  Wonder what’s in store for the rest of the day?

“Happy Birthday Zoe!”

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It Pays to Win A World Series !! How Much Did they Make??

Reprinted from SI.COM.  

NEW YORK (AP) – A full postseason share for the World Series champion San Francisco Giants was worth a record $377,003, breaking the mark that had stood since the 2006 St. Louis Cardinals.

In the first year of the expansion of the playoffs from eight teams to 10, the players’ pool was a record $65.36 million, Major League Baseball said Monday. The previous mark of $59.1 million came in 2009.

The Giants split $23.5 million, voting 50 full shares, partial shares equivalent to another 11.1, and 12 cash awards. All-Star outfielder Melky Cabrera, suspended for the final 45 games of the regular season and the division series, automatically received a full share without his teammates having to make a decision.

Under baseball’s joint drug agreement, he was eligible for his share because his suspension ended in time for him to be on the active roster for a majority of the Giants’ postseason games, even though San Francisco decided not to use him. Under Major League Rule 45, he gets a full share because he was with the team from June 1 on.

Cabrera, the All-Star game MVP, became a free agent last week and agreed to a $16 million, two-year contract with Toronto.

San Francisco’s full share was up from $323,170 for the 2011 champion Cardinals and $317,631 on the 2010 Giants.

A full share on the AL champion Tigers was worth $284,275, up from $251,516 for last year’s Texas Rangers.

The players’ pool included 50 percent of the gate receipts from the two wild card games, and 60 percent from the first three games of each division series and the first four games of each league championship series and the World Series.

Full shares were worth $122,558 for the Cardinals, $115,065 for the New York Yankees, $37,865 for the Cincinnati Reds, $37,045 for the Washington Nationals, $34,826 for the Baltimore Orioles, $34,325 for the Oakland Athletics, $19,609 for the Atlanta Braves and $16,999 for the Rangers.

Shares are split among the 10 postseason teams. In the past, they were divided among the eight playoff teams and the four second-place teams that failed to reach the postseason.

Related articles

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How Do You Solve a Problem Like . . . Melky?

Melky Cabrera

Melky Cabrera’s front and center everywhere in the media, but not in the SF Giants front office.  Matthew Pouliot on NBC’s HardballTalk wrote a convincing piece recently about the organization not allowing Melky to join the team after his 50 game suspension.  The suspension would be lifted about five games into the playoffs, assuming the Giants get there, and it’s looking pretty good they will.  

I wrote a testy piece a few weeks ago and the title pretty much sums up my frustration with the mess, “Melky Who?  Who Needs Him?  Who Cares?”  But the fact is, Melky’s record prior to his suspension was  .346/.390/.516 in 459 at-bats.  The real question is what would his record be after the suspension?  There’s only one way to find out.  This would be a rest test for the argument that PED’s do or do not allow players to hit better.  

If Melky were allowed to play in postseason and kept hitting like before, it could present a convincing argument that PED’s are not responsible for making a batter hit better as many have alleged.  Barry Bond’s argument was if 80% of the ball players were using steroids in the 90′s, why weren’t 80% of the ball players hitting better ~ a lot better?  Personally, I’d like to see this tested.  What could it hurt?  Bring Melky back and, if nothing else,  use him as a DH when appropriate.   I mean, the Giants had no qualms about bringing Guillermo Moto back a few weeks ago and that was after a “100 game suspension”, for a second offense, no less.

This blog has a sophisticated database ~ I found out the hard way      So what do you think?  Should the SF Giants bring Melky Cabrera back to the roster after the 50 game suspension is lifted?   Your “vote below” means absolutely nothing.  I mean it’s not going to change the minds of the powers-that-be.  I’m just curious and I’m happy to share the results with you here.

Related articles

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2012 MLB Team and Player Salaries

2012 All Star Game Photo

Here’s the 2012 update to our 2011 listing published August 27, 2011.  This comes to us compliments of USA Today.  If you’ll click the individual teams, you can access the individual players salaries.  It will be interesting to note the annual salaries of the teams that make the playoffs;  in other words, did they get what they paid for?  For example; the Washington Nationals have the best record in the Majors this year, but have the 11th Lowest Salary out of 30 Teams.   Salary Chart Linked Here

2012 MLB Salaries
TEAM	TOTAL PAYROLL
New York Yankees	$ 197,962,289
Philadelphia Phillies	$ 174,538,938
Boston Red Sox	$ 173,186,617
Los Angeles Angels	$ 154,485,166
Detroit Tigers	$ 132,300,000
Texas Rangers	$ 120,510,974
Miami Marlins	$ 118,078,000
San Francisco Giants	$ 117,620,683
St. Louis Cardinals	$ 110,300,862
Milwaukee Brewers	$ 97,653,944
Chicago White Sox	$ 96,919,500
Los Angeles Dodgers	$ 95,143,575
Minnesota Twins	$ 94,085,000
New York Mets	$ 93,353,983
Chicago Cubs	$ 88,197,033
Atlanta Braves	$ 83,309,942
Cincinnati Reds	$ 82,203,616
Seattle Mariners	$ 81,978,100
Baltimore Orioles	$ 81,428,999
Washington Nationals	$ 81,336,143
Cleveland Indians	$ 78,430,300
Colorado Rockies	$ 78,069,571
Toronto Blue Jays	$ 75,489,200
Arizona Diamondbacks	$ 74,284,833
Tampa Bay Rays	$ 64,173,500
Pittsburgh Pirates	$ 63,431,999
Kansas City Royals	$ 60,916,225
Houston Astros	$ 60,651,000
Oakland Athletics	$ 55,372,500
San Diego Padres	$ 55,244,700

               

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“Melky Who”? Who Needs Him ~ Who Cares.

Melky Cabrera. Photo Courtesy Jason O. Watson/Getty Images

The Melky Cabrera’s 50 game suspension for testing positive for performance enhancing drugs occurred on August 15, the day I left for vacation.  I had no access to the internet for three days and wanted to wait until I returned home to figure it all out.  My response was and is “Shame on You Melky!”

I mean haven’t these guys learned anything?  Are they so desperate and stupid that after all the grief baseball players, and for that matter the entire game of baseball, have gone through with PEDS, suspensions and hall of fame concerns,  do they think they’re the one lone infallible soul that won’t get caught?  Good grief.   Major League Baseball took much too long to finally take a stand and, now that they have, the rules are written and they need to be followed.  The thing that really stuck in my craw was the nonchalance with which basically Melky answered, “I did it” and then didn’t have the guts to face his teammates.  Nothing, nada, zilch, not a word.

“Uh…. Duh….”

The San Francisco Giants have had this albatross around their neck for a long time beginning with Barry Bonds (though he’s never admitted it) and several in-between dandies ending with Guillermo Moto’s 100 game suspension that ends this week.  Is Barry Bonds guilty?  Probably.  But at this point does it matter?  Baseball has to get past this and it starts with the players.   It’s called personal responsibility and it’s something that’s sadly lacking in our new- age culture.  Don’t like your boss?  Sue him.  Made a bad investment?  Sue your broker.  Your doctor didn’t quite fix your hangnail the way you wanted?  Sue him.  Nobody takes responsibility for anything anymore.  It’s always somebody else’s fault.  The players are paid huge sums of money to play the game and to play by the rules and it’s their personal responsibility to see that they do.

But here’s the crux of the matter, the redeeming feature of the story.   The SF Giants are doing just fine without Melky Cabrera, thank you very much.  Since his suspension the Giants have won 7 of 10 games and now lead the National League West by 3.5 games.  They were tied with the LA Dodgers when Melky left.  It’s possible Melky might end up winning the batting crown this year, but you know what?  Who cares?  Nobody remembers a batting crown champion ten years down the road, but for sure they’ll remember a 50 game suspension.

So you go Giants!  And that goes for any other team who has to put up with this type of embarrassment.   If you have a player who doesn’t play by the rules, who needs him?   Who cares?  Not this fan ~

Related articles

• Melky Cabrera Suspended for 50 Games After Testing Positive for Testosterone (nesn.com)
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“Is There Something Wrong with This Picture?” Probably Not ~

I found a great post this morning that talks about the who, why and what of the no-hitters and perfect games that seem to be happening with regularity this season, more than in seasons past.

Keith Olbermann

Last month I posted an article from Keith Olbermann wherein his supposed innuendo was that Cain may have taken PED’s  when he threw his perfect game and that his ” there’s something wrong with this picture” theme was just a little offensive to this writer.

So it was very refreshing to read this article from Bay Area Sports Talk on the subject this morning.  It presents an actual analysis and discussion on the subject instead of a knee-jerk reaction to something the Giants have accomplished as a team, again.  Here’s a few excerpts:

• With the strict punishments looming over PED users, the playing field has been seemingly leveled — and pitchers are reaping the benefits.
• With pitching evolving to its maximum potential and PED’s seemingly eliminated, Major League pitchers will be the superstars of The Big Show in the future.

Thanks to Brian Evans for the article, “With Steroid Use Halted – the MLB is Getting a Little More Perfect“.   Good stuff Brian!

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Umpire Accountability ~ Doing Nothing about Something!

“I’m thinking, I’m thinking!”

I responded  to a poll this morning.  Nothing unusual about that.   Usually my baseball thinking is right in there with the others, but this one surprised me.     This  one asked what to do about umpires who consistently made bad calls

Here’s the preface to the poll:

“Should umpires be subject to performance-based punishment? Should a high-profile missed call subject an umpire to suspension, fines or even demotion? Or, perhaps, should MLB raise the league minimum for umpires to $480,000, to match their player minimum, so that umpires do have a financial incentive for such scrutiny?”

The responses were overwhelmingly in favor of, you guessed it, doing nothing!  The article, written by Curtis Granderson in the New York Times,  was posted in Close Call Sports,  linked here.    It’s a good read.  Take a look and see what you think.

 

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